US3399784A

US3399784A - Shelving units with rolling shelves

Info

Publication number: US3399784A
Application number: US569178A
Authority: US
Inventors: Henry M Buchbinder; Robert J Winsler
Original assignee: Ardco Inc
Current assignee: Ardco Inc
Priority date: 1966-08-01
Filing date: 1966-08-01
Publication date: 1968-09-03
Anticipated expiration: 1985-09-03

Description

Sept. 3, 1968 H. M. BUCHBINDER ET AL 3,399,784

SHELVING UNITS WITH ROLLING SHELVES Filed Aug. 1, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 n u [I a U v u a a j g c g n [I g n u D n n E 3 n u 42 u I I ee z 3 L T 16 z' INVENTOPS 'YHenryMfilzc'hbindaP Robert J Wier H r 4/ Sept. 3, 1968 C B D ET AL 3,399,784

SHELVING UNITS WITH ROLLING SHELVES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 1, 1966 IN VENTOBS Hen M.

'1 B0 erf J. Winsleruzig M CHEW United States Patent 3,399,784 1 SHELVING UNITS WITH ROLLING SHELVES Henry M. Buchbiuder, Olympia Fields, Ill., and Robert J. Winsler, Elkton, Ky., assignors to Ardco, Inc., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Filed Aug. 1, 1966, Ser. No. 569,178 4 Claims. (Cl. 211151) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE supporting the wheels of empty shelves for return move-,

ment in the opposite direction relative to the direction of movement of the shelves on said side rails, and means supporting said return rails at an inclined angle but sloping oppositely relative to said side rails.

This invention relates to shelving units, particularly such units which are employed for holding merchandise which is on display for sale in stores or the like.

One object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved shelving unit having shelves which are constructed and arranged so that they will roll forwardly by gravity to the front of the shelving unit, whereby merchandise on the shelves will be fully accessible to the customers.

A further object is to provide such a new and improved shelving unit in which the shelves are provided with wheels or rollers which are arranged to travel along a pair of side rails.

Another object is to provide a new and improved shelving unit of the foregoing character in which the side rails are inclined forwardly so that the shelves will roll to the front of the shelving unit by gravity.

A further object is to provide such a new and improved shelving unit which may have a plurality of pairs of side rails at different elevations for supporting successive tiers of shelves.

Another object is to provide such a new and improved shelving unit in which a plurality of shelves may be mounted on each pair of side rails, so that the successive shelves will move to the front of the shelving unit by gravity when the shelf in the front of the unit is emptied and removed from the rails.

It is another object to provide such a new and improved shelving unit in which a stop or detent is provided for temporarily holding each shelf at the rear of the shelving unit, so that the shelf may be loaded conveniently from the rear, the arrangement being such that the shelf is releasable from the stop or detent for movement toward the front of the shelving unit.

A further object is to provide such a new and improved shelving unit which is provided with a pair of return rails for returning the empty shelves to the rear of the shelving unit.

.Another object is to provide such anew and improved shelving unit in which the return rails are inclined to the rear so that the. empty shelves will roll by gravity along the return rails toward the rear of the shelving unit.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will appear from the following description, taken with the accompanying drawings, in which:

ice

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a shelving unit to be described as an illustrative embodiment of the present invention, certain parts being broken away and other parts being shown in detached positions for clarity of illustration.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken through the shelving unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary vertical section, taken generally along the line 3-3 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary section taken generally along the line 4-4 in FIG. 3.

It will be seen that the drawings illustrate a shelving unit 10 which is well adapted for holding merchandise to be displayed for sale in stores or the like. The shelving unit is particularly advantageous for the display of refrigerated merchandise behind display doors which are mounted on a cooler or cabinet. Such merchandise includes milk, eggs, cheese, butter and other similar refrigerated products which are commonly displayed for sale in a dairy case or cabinet, and frozen foods of various kinds which are usually displayed in a separate low temperature case or cabinet. In such display arrangements, the customer has access to the merchandise by opening the vertical display doors, which are fitted with transparent panels so that the merchandise will be clearly visible to the customer. Such display doors are well known to those skilled in the art and are disclosed, for example, in Patent No. 2,987,782, patented June 13, 1961.

The illustrated shelving unit 10 comprises a plurality of shelves 12 which are supported by one or more pairs of side rails 14. A plurality of vertical posts or columns 16 may be employed to support the side rails 14. Four such posts are employed in the illustrated construction.

The illustrated shelves 12 are of the well known grill type made of wire, but any other suitable type of shelf may be employed. Each of the illustrated shelves 12 has a generally rectangular border frame 18 made of heavy wire, and a large number of cross members 20 extending across the border frame 18 between the opposite sides thereof. The cross member 20 may be made of lighter wire and may be welded or otherwise secured to the border frame 18.

Each of the illustrated shelves 12 is provided with a plurality of wheels or rollers 22 which are adapted to ride along the side rails 14. Four such wheels 22 are mounted on each of the illustrated shelves 12. The wheels 22 may be provided with axles 24 in the form of heavy wires or rods extending across the under side of the border frame 18. The axles 24 may be welded or otherwise secured to the border frame 18. It will be seen that the cross wires 20 are mounted on the upper side of the border frame 18 to support the merchandise which is to be displayed.

To retain the merchandise on the shelf, it is preferred to form each shelf with one or more rails or guards 26. The illustrated rail 26 extends across the front of the shelf to prevent the merchandise from sliding off the front of the shelf.

To provide a track for supporting the wheels 22, each of the side rails 14 is preferably formed with an inwardly projecting generally horizontal flange 28. The main supporting portion of each of the rails 14 is in the form of a vertical flange 30. The horizontal flange 28 projects inwardly from the lower edge of the vertical flange 30. Thus, each rail 14 is generally L-shaped in cross section The vertical flange 30 may be formed with a reinforcing rib 32 which extends along the length of the rail 14.

Suitable means are provided to secure the side rails 14 to the vertical posts or columns 16. In the illustrated construction, each rail 14 is provided with a plurality of clips or hooks 34 which are adapted to be inserted into the openings or slots 36 formed in the posts 16. As illustrated, the posts 16 are in the form of hollow metal tubes which are square or rectangular in cross section. The openings 36 are formed in the side walls 38 of the posts 16. It' is preferred to form the posts 16 with a large number of openings 36, which are uniformly spaced at frequent intervals. This arrangement affords a large selection of positions in which the rails 14 may be mounted, so that each pair of rails may be mounted at virtually any desired elevation. Moreover, a plurality of pairs of rails may be mounted On the same set of four posts, so as to provide successive tiers of shelves at various elevations. The spacing between the succesive tiers of shelves may be varied in accordance with the height of the merchandise which is to be displayed.

A pluarlity of the shelving units may be mounted side by side in the refrigerated cabinet or cooler. In that case, the adjacent shelving units may be arranged to share a pair of posts 16 at the front and rear of the shelving units.

Floor plates 40 are provided in the illustrated construction to support the lower ends of the vertical posts or columns 16. The plates 40 are adapted to be screwed or otherwise secured to the floor of the refrigerated cabinet or cooler. Leveling screws 42 are preferably provided between the plates 40 and the lower ends of the posts 16. The upper end of each post 16 is preferably secured to the ceiling or upper Wall of the cabinet or cooler by means of a ceiling flange or bracket 44. Thus, the posts 16 are rigidly secured to the cabinet or building structure of the cooler.

To provide additional rigidity, one or more cross bars 46 may be connected between each pair of posts. In the illustrated construction, one of the cross bars 46 is connected between the rear posts, and another is connected between the front posts. The cross bars 46 are suitably secured to the posts 16, as by means of hooks or clips 48, similar to the hooks 34 which are provided on the side rails 14, The hooks 48 are adapted to be inserted into the openings 36 and moved downwardly into interlocking engagement with the side walls 38 of the posts 16.

One or more intermediate cross bars 50 may be provided between the side rails 14, to prevent them from spreading or flexing laterally under the weight of the merchandise on the shelves. The cross bars 50 are suitably secured to the side rails 14, as by means of clips or hooks 52.

The side rails 14 are preferably positioned so that they are inclined to the front. In this way, the shelves 12 will roll by gravity to the front of the shelving unit. Only a slight inclination of the side rails 14 is required to cause the shelves to roll to the front. Normally, the desired inclination may be obtained by inserting the hooks 34 at the rear end of each side rail 14 into the next higher opening 36 in the rear post 16 relative to the opening which is employed in the corresponding front post.

Means are provided to limit the forward movement of the shelves so that they will be prevented from rolling off the front ends of the side rails. As shown, the front ends of the side rails 14 are provided with stops in the form of lugs or fingers 54 which project inwardly from the side rails. The lugs 54 may be formed integrally with the side rails and may be bent inwardly therefrom. Bumpers 56 made of rubber, plastic or other soft resilient material are preferably mounted on the lugs 54 to engage the shelves. In this case, the stop lugs 54 are also employed to support the channel-shaped strip or molding 58 on which the price tags or signs may be mounted.

The side rails 14 are normally long enough to hold at least two of the shelves 12. Preferably, the side rails should be long enough to hold several shelves. Each shelf is normally loaded at the rear of the shelving unit 10. The loaded shelf is then allowed to roll toward the front of the shelving unit. When the front shelf is empty, it is removed from the front portions of the side rails 14 by one of the employees of the store. The other shelves on the side rails then automatically roll toward the front, so that a fully loaded shelf will come into position at the front of the shelving unit.

Stop or detent means are preferably provided for temporarily holding each shelf in the loading position at the rear of the shelving unit. In the illustrated construction, a detent or hump 60 is formed on the horizontal flange 28 of each side rail 14, near the rear end thereof. The hump 60 projects upwardly from the flange 28 to a sufficient height to retain the corresponding rear wheel of the rear-most shelf. For loading, each shelf is placed on the rear portions of the rails 14 with the rear wheels behind the humps 60. The shelf may then be loaded with merchandise. When the shelf is fully loaded, one of the store employees pushes the shelf forwardly with sufficient force to cause the rear wheels to roll up and over the humps 60. The shelf then travels forwardly by gravity until it comes into engagement with the shelf to the front.

If there is no other shelf to the front, the newly loaded shelf rolls forwardly until it engages the bumpers 56.

The shelving unit preferably comprises a pair of return rails 64 which are normally inclined toward the rear of the shelving unit. The return rails 64 are otherwise the same as the rails 14. Normally, each return rail 64 is hooked onto the front post 16 one notch higher than it is hooked onto the corresponding rear post.

Normally, the return rails 64 are mounted on the posts 16 near the lower ends thereof. Thus, the return rails 64 are at a lower elevation than any of the upwardly inclined rails 14.

In the operation of the shelving unit 10, each shelf 12 is placed on the rear portions of the side rails 14 so that the rear wheels 24 of the shelf are behind the humps 60 on the flanges 28. The height of the humps is sufficient to prevent the shelf from rolling forwardly. The shelf is then loaded with merchandise. The humps 60 prevent the shelf from traveling forwardly until it has been loaded from the rear of the shelving unit. One of the store employees then pushes the shelf forwardly so that the rear wheels 24 will roll up and over the humps 60. The shelf 12 rolls forwardly by gravity unitl it is arrested by the bumpers 56.

The merchandise on the front shelf is readily accessible to the customer, who gains access to the shelf by opening the glass panel display door which normally is used in front of the shelving unit. When the front shelf is empty, it is lifted upwardly and removed from the rails 14 by one of the store employees. The loaded shelves to the rear of the front shelf then roll forwardly by gravity so that another loaded shelf comes to the front of the shelving unit. The store employee returns the empty shelf to the rear of the shelving unit by placing the empty shelf on the return rails 64. Due to the inclination of the return rails 64, the empty shelf rolls to the rear. Within the cooler or cabinet, one of the store employees may remove the empty shelves from the return rails 64 so that the empty shelves may again be used.

Normally, each shelving unit has two or more pairs of side rails 14 so that two or more tiers of shelves may be employed. The spacing between the tiers of shelves may be adjusted in accordance with the height of the merchandise to be displayed. Normally, the side rails 14 are long enough to support several of the rolling shelves 12 so that the shelves move as a train along the rails. In this way, a large stock of the merchandise may be kept on the shelves, ready for purchase by the customers. As soon as each shelf is empty, it is removed from the front of the shelving unit and returned to the rear along the return rails 64 so that it may be reloaded with merchandise.

In addition to stiffening the side rails 14, the ribs 32 project inwardly to serve as guides for the merchandise. Thus, if any of the merchandise is off-center on the shelves so that the merchandise engages one of the side rails, the corresponding rib 32 minimizes the friction between the merchandise and the side rail.

Various other modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be employed without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention, as exemplified in the foregoing description and defined in the following claims.

We claim:

1. In a shelving unit, the combination comprising:

a plurality of shelves,

each shelf having a plurality of wheels on each side thereof, I

at least one pair of side rails for supporting said wheels,

means for supporting said side rails at an inclined angle so that said shelves will roll by gravity along said side rails to the lower ends thereof, an additional pair of return rails for supporting the wheels of empty shelves placed on said return rails,

and means supporting said return rails in vertically spaced relation to said side rails and inclined in the opposite direction relative to the inclination of said side rails for returning the empty shelves by gravity in said opposite direction.

2. In a shelving unit, the combination comprising:

a plurality of shelves,

each shelf having a plurality of wheels on each side thereof,

at least one pair of side rails for supporting said wheels,

means for supporting said side rails at an inclined angle so that said shelves will roll by gravity along said side rails to the lower ends thereof,

and an additional pair of return rails mounted in vertically spaced relation to said side rails for supporting the wheels of empty shelves for return movement in the opposite direction relative to the direction of movement 6f the shelves on said side rails.

3. The combination according to claim 1, comprising: 3

stop means at the lower ends of said side rails for retaining said shelves on the lower end portions of said side rails,

said shelves being removable manually from the lower end portions of said side rails,

and a detent on at least one of said side rails adjacent the higher end thereof for detaining one of the wheels of one of said shelves to hold the shelf temporarily in a position adjacent the higher ends of said rails.

4. The combination according to claim 1, comprising:

bumpers at the lower ends of said side rails for arresting the movement of said shelves along said side rails,

and a hump projecting upwardly from at least one of said side rails near the upper end thereof for temporarily detaining one wheel of one of said shelves to hold said shelf in a loading position,

each shelf being removable manually from the lower end portions of said rails.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,599,227 9/1926 Gantvoort 2l416.4 1,915,249 6/ 1933 Jorgensen 248-345.1 1,975,327 10/1934 Loney 211-151 XR 2,443,871 6/1948 Shield 211--71 XR 2,776,030 1/1957 Bush 211-182 XR 2,891,677 6/1959 Ritchie 211-151 XR 2,971,655 2/1961 Duboff et a1 211162 XR FOREIGN PATENTS 1,141,231 12/1962 Germany.

ROY D. FRAZIER, Primary Examiner.

W. D. LOULAN, Assistant Examiner.